Within Japan’s small group of elite tuners, there lies a select few who continuously take it among themselves to set the bar higher; taking their chosen projects and transforming them into something more akin to a factory backed race program. The team at M’s Machine Works, led by Takayuki Mizumoto, are a shining example of this, and exactly why they were chosen to be featured in 80R Volume 3.
As we continue through our Archive series, featuring cars that were (possibly still are), slated to be in the third volume of our 80R publication, we arrive at the Saitama based Porsche specialists, M’s Machine Works. Inset from the main street it resides on, M’s is a rather unassuming shop, mostly hidden from view. Much like his shop, Mizumoto embodies a sort of ‘behind the scenes’ persona in the motor sport of Super GT. During the day he is contracted to work on, design and manufacture chassis and suspension parts for some Super GT’s best teams, out of his workshop.
The M’s Cayman GT3 project is a culmination of his expertise in chassis development, and his shop’s personal aesthetic when it comes to building cars.
This car has seen many reiterations, the one you see here (2020) is among the newest (2021 changes really only saw minor adjustments and a new livery). After the 2018 season, Mizumoto and the M’s techs got to work in design an entirely new, much wider, front and rear end for the coupe to help accommodate a wider Hoosier tire. While Mizumoto himself took care of making the custom widebody, he delegated some of the heavy lifting to an impressive list of people in the industry. The car was completely stripped, and well known Super GT constructor (and 3 time series champions) APR Racing was contracted to completely revamp the rear end. All new framed chassis cage continuation, suspension pick-up points, and an inbound, cantilever suspension setup were meticulously crafted. It all amounts to a truly one-of-a-kind Porsche built with no stone left unturned. A very refined lap time of 58.070 around Tsukuba, with a goal of breaking into the 57’s, is all the proof necessary to know that this car is not one to be messed with.
The knife edged swan neck mounts directly to the chassis, and can actually be removed in its entirety with the rear suspension for quick maintenance and diagnosis.
A great view of the custom rear widebody constructed by Mizumoto.
The heart of the 987 is a transplanted Carrera Cup 997 motor controlled by a Motec M800 unit. This is the newest reiteration of the rear end with all new rear suspension pick-up points, as previously mentioned. This entire subsection of the car can be removed in and of itself.
Not really seen, but definitely heard, is the Hewland NLT 6 speed gearbox mated to the motor. One of M’s goals is to maximize the ability of the midship car, and by the looks of it they’re certainly aiming high.
Enjoy, and please look forward to more of this story in Volume 3 of 80R in 2022. Thank you for your support.